News

Grammar to admit pupils who fail 11-plus but convince ‘review board’ of worthiness

A grammar school wants to boost numbers by offering places to pupils that fail their 11-plus – as long as they show “sufficient evidence of being grammar school standard”.

Chatham Grammar School for Boys, in Kent, plans to award any unfilled places to children who fail the test. But they must provide an “admissions committee” with evidence they meet “grammar school standards”.

The committee will reportedly be made up of governors and will examine information including recommendations from headteachers, examples of previous work or proof that the child nearly passed the test.

It is among a series of proposals out for consultation from the under-subscribed school to boost numbers. Other measures include becoming co-educational by 2017.

A consultation document on the website of the school’s local authority, Medway Council, states: “From national offer day, any available spaces will be allocated to those children who have provided sufficient evidence to the admissions committee of being grammar school standard.”

No further information about the required evidence is included, and both the school and its sponsor, the Thinking Schools Academy Trust, did not respond to requests for comment.

Robert McCartney, QC, chair of the National Grammar Schools Association, said the plans seemed sensible.

“It’s a useful tool to have an examination followed by an interview with information from the primary school that can show what a child was doing.

“Exams only test intellectual ability. What they do not show are aspects of children’s character that means they can succeed. I welcome the chance to offer grammar school places to those on the cusp.”

Concerns have been raised locally that the selection process could be open to abuse and may not meet school admission rules.

But Alan Parker, a former schools adjudicator, told Schools Week: “As a designated grammar school Chatham is allowed to select by ability and it is up to them to decide how it is assessed; provided the method is ‘fair, transparent and objective’ – as required by the school admission code.”

He said the use of a lay panel to make the decision according to “vague criteria” could be problematic, but the school was allowed to set a lower bar than the standard Kent
11-plus test if it wished.

A letter to parents on the school’s website, signed by both the trust chairman Peter Martin and governing body chairman Michael Bailey, states: “Given the under-capacity, parents who are able to prove their child is of selective ability are able to gain a place in the school, removing them from their allocated high school.”

It said that this would allow the school to reach its published admission number and make it less likely to take pupils in on appeal.

Chatham has been a boys’-only school for nearly 200 years, but recently reduced its planned intake from 146 to 120 to reflect its declining roll.

In September 2013, Ofsted said its leadership and management were inadequate and the school was put in special measures. Following a 2014 report, it was judged to be good in all categories.

The online document says the school is operating with fewer than 120 new students per year – meaning it gets about £200,000 less in funding. It has already taken steps to cut costs, including axing drama from the key stage 4 curriculum.

The school’s website said no final decision would be made until feedback from parents and the community was considered. The consultation closed on Tuesday.

A Department for Education source said the school was rightly consulting with its community on the plans and said all schools must ensure places were offered in a fair and transparent way.

Parents will be demanding that tutors assemble the evidence that little johnny is grammar school material. Can you imagine a tutor NOT offering this service?
And what tutor is going to say that little johnny is not grammar school material? They would be out of a job immediately.

So we will have a system where if you have enough money you can pay a tutor to get your child into grammar school. Tutors will be able to show you the evidence of your child’s ability even before they meet your child.

To clinch the deal you would save a lot of money compared to paying independent school fees.

Will this increase social mobility? Is this moral? Will the rich and powerful be able to resist it?

A grammar school with places? Surely not. We’re told there are a couple of thousand applications to each grammar but here’s one considering interviewing those who fail the first hurdle.
This will allow the grammar to cream off children from lower down the ability band. If grammars exist, and I don’t think they should, they shouldn’t be able to change admissions to ensure they can scoop lower in the ability pool when they can’t fill their places. That’s already happened in parts of Northern Ireland. http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/education/revealed-northern-irelands-grammar-school-entrance-test-lottery-28586733.html

There are some Grammar Schools with vacancies in both Kent and Bucks. Those in Kent are in the Medway area where there are a larger number of Grammar Schools than in other parts of Kent. Medway is a different education authority area to the rest of Kent. Medway has the problem that it borders the Thames with no bridges or tunnels, so its potential catchment is a semi circle not a full circle. It is also some distance from London otherwise it would be full. I do think that for governors to be involved in the selection process in the proposed way is not compliant with the code. Governors are not professionals in the Same way as teachers. Their decisions would not be fair, clear or objective.